An Oldie but Goodie: The Service Contract Manifesto

The manifesto is a “declaration of customer-contractor interdependence.” In simple words it lays out some highly Vested conclusions: that “both sides want more,” and that both the buyer and the service provider “recognize the need for better results.” However the typical state of contracting still comes with an adversarial mindset attached much of the time because it’s “easier to contract out of habit, or ignorance.”

It begins with an echo of the Declaration of Independence’s preamble and then lists 35 “self-evident” truths. I won’t list them all, but the first four strike me as crucial:

All contracts are relationships

Successful relationships are based on trust. Counter intuitively, trust is earned by first giving it

Contract relationships are made for the exchange of value

Value is mutually beneficial – though not equal. Customers and contractors decide for themselves what’s valuable